This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
As every day goes by, how can we close our eyes
Until we open up our hearts?
We can learn to share and show how much we care
Right from the moment that we start
It seems like overnight we see a world in a different light
Somehow our innocence is lost
How can we look away 'cause every single day
We've got to help at any cost
We can bridge the distance
Only we can make the difference
Don't you know that tears are not enough
If we can pull together
We could change the world forever
Heaven knows that tears are not enough
It's up to me and you
To make the dream come true
It's time to take our message everywhere, you know
C'est l'amour qui nous rassemble
D'ici à l'autre bout du monde
Let's show them Canada still cares
Oh, you know that we'll be there
We can bridge the distance
Only we can make the difference
Don't you know that tears are not enough (tears are not enough)
If we can pull together
We could change the world forever
Heaven knows that tears are not enough
And if we should try together, you and I
Maybe we could understand the reasons why
If we take (we take) a stand (a stand)
Every woman, child, and man
We could make it work
For God's sake, lend a hand
We can bridge the distance
Only we can make the difference
Don't you know that tears are not enough (oh, yeah)
If we can pull together
We could change the world forever
Heaven knows that tears are not enough (tears are not enough, no, no, no)
We can bridge the distance (bridge the distance, yeah)
Only we can make the difference
Don't you know that tears are not enough (tears are not, tears are not enough)
If we can pull together
We could change the world forever
Heaven knows that tears are not enough
We can bridge the distance
Only we can make the difference
Don't you know that tears are not enough
Until we open up our hearts?
We can learn to share and show how much we care
Right from the moment that we start
It seems like overnight we see a world in a different light
Somehow our innocence is lost
How can we look away 'cause every single day
We've got to help at any cost
We can bridge the distance
Only we can make the difference
Don't you know that tears are not enough
If we can pull together
We could change the world forever
Heaven knows that tears are not enough
It's up to me and you
To make the dream come true
It's time to take our message everywhere, you know
C'est l'amour qui nous rassemble
D'ici à l'autre bout du monde
Let's show them Canada still cares
Oh, you know that we'll be there
We can bridge the distance
Only we can make the difference
Don't you know that tears are not enough (tears are not enough)
If we can pull together
We could change the world forever
Heaven knows that tears are not enough
And if we should try together, you and I
Maybe we could understand the reasons why
If we take (we take) a stand (a stand)
Every woman, child, and man
We could make it work
For God's sake, lend a hand
We can bridge the distance
Only we can make the difference
Don't you know that tears are not enough (oh, yeah)
If we can pull together
We could change the world forever
Heaven knows that tears are not enough (tears are not enough, no, no, no)
We can bridge the distance (bridge the distance, yeah)
Only we can make the difference
Don't you know that tears are not enough (tears are not, tears are not enough)
If we can pull together
We could change the world forever
Heaven knows that tears are not enough
We can bridge the distance
Only we can make the difference
Don't you know that tears are not enough
Lyrics submitted by SongMeanings
Tears Are Not Enough Lyrics as written by James Douglas Vallance Bryan Adams
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Peermusic Publishing
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
Lord Huron
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.